


Lost At Sea

by taviceline



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Abandonment, Fluff, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-23
Updated: 2017-06-23
Packaged: 2018-11-17 13:24:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,431
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11276166
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/taviceline/pseuds/taviceline
Summary: A few weeks after Shiro's disappearance, there is a plan to move on and continue. Keith isn't ready to let go and Lance is quite frankly the only one who can console him.





	Lost At Sea

"You want me to do _what_?" Keith hadn't fully intended for his voice to raise the way it did. The discussion had turned to everyone's parameter's for the next mission, taking a colony back from Zarkon's control.

"Keith. I want you to try piloting the Black Lion and leading the team in creating Voltron," Allura repeated. Her voice was calm and in clear contrast to Keith's tone. Her brows furrowed in confusion, seeing Keith's reaction. "Shiro named you his next in line."

"Only if he died," Keith reminded her. He remembered the day perfectly. Shiro had taken on an injury that could've been fatal. Keith remembered him speaking in a tired voice but full of conviction. 'I want you to lead Voltron.' Keith didn't think it would ever get to that point; he had been wrong before. "And he is not dead."

"He's not here either, Keith." A glimmer of the pain that Allura felt as she spoke was heard in her voice. She didn't believe that Shiro was dead - at least, she didn't want to. However, the paladins had a duty to fulfill. The Galra would not stop for them to find Shiro. She wavered for only a moment before regaining her composure.

Despite the rest of the team being in the room, her eyes were locked onto Keith's. Pidge murmured something about trying to make a game work and left the main room. Hunk left with her, shooting Lance an inquisitive look. Lance hesitantly stood and looked from Keith to Allura.

It was almost like watching two suns about to collide. The other gave a warm and inviting presence that welcomed everything. One that was full of a fiery passion at the edge of exploding. Lance left the room but he stayed behind a nearby doorway, keeping an ear out.

Allura continued. "I am piloting Blue. Lance is piloting Red. All I'm asking if for you to try and form a bond with the Black Lion. I am not asking you to replace Shiro."

"Allura, that's not the point."

Coran stepped froward but Allura placed a hand to her side. She knew that she could handle it. Keith motioned towards the vastness that could be seen from every part of the room. "Look, if by some miracle the Black Lion listens to me…what then? You'll want me to pilot her full time. I won't do that him as long as he's--"

"We have to look at reality, Keith!" Allura's voice choked up near the end of her sentence but she kept going, motioning towards the hall that led to where the lions were. "Shiro - he's not here right now. We don't when he'll be here. Voltron still has a duty to the universe."

Keith ran a hand through his hair and a soft scoff escaped his lips. He shook his head, still in disbelief and tears were brimming in his eyes. Shiro was like a brother to him. The one person that didn't leave him like his father did. The first time he disappeared, Keith dropped out of Garrison to find him. He did. This time, Keith didn't know if he would find him again. He took his jacket off one of the chairs and made a beeline for the training room.

Lance stepped out of his hiding spot and Allura sighed softly. The mice at her feet hugged her ankles and she tried for a smile, looking back at Lance. She nodded towards where Keith had gone and Lance smiled. Neither of them spoke but neither of them had to. As Lance walked into the main hallway, he heard a familiar sound of Kaltenecker being content. The cow approached Lance impatiently, nudging him towards the room where Keith had been training.

"Castle, stop." At Lance's command, the robot that Keith was fighting froze in place. Kaltenecker gave a soft snort before moving on and walking down the hall. "Allura doesn't want you to replace Shiro."

Keith didn't turn to look at Lance. If he did, he knew what he would see. He spun the sword in his hand and practiced various stances. "No. Shiro wanted me to replace Shiro. Allura is just going along with that plan."

"Yeah, but that's not what this is about. Keith." Lance moved so that he was in front of Keith and part of him was heartbroken. Keith's eyes were normally a fierce, intimidating shade of purple. They caught attention in any light and every time he smiled, they reminded Lance of a galaxy. Full of wonder, mystery, and something inviting. A beautiful nebula that never ceased to amaze. 

Now, Keith's eyes seemed darker and unsure. His eyes resembled a body of water that they encountered on one of their missions on another planet. They were uncertain and wavering like a storm in a hurricane. If Lance didn't know any better, this wasn't Keith. Keith was usually sure of himself and on an uncompromising course. He looked as if he was a boat lost at sea. Lance took Keith's hand without a word, leading him to a spot where they both sat against the wall. Both of them sat on the ground, Keith trying not to meet Lance's eyes.

"If you won't--"

"I knew this was going to happen, Lance. I don't know but I knew." Keith's voice was soft, just barely above a whisper. He sat facing Lance with his head leaning against the wall. "I saw him leaving during the trials."

Lance, still holding Keith's hand, ran his thumb over his knuckles absentmindedly. He raised an eyebrow slightly at the mention of the trials. "With the Blade of Marmora. You never talked about it."

Keith shrugged. His free hand fidgeted with his own dagger. Normally, the glow would've been comforting. It only reminded him of the incident with the Galra resistance fighters. "You never asked. During the trials, I saw my dad. But I also saw Shiro. He kept telling me to give up and then he started leaving because I wouldn't listen."

"Shiro isn't gone because of you, Keith."

The abruptness of Lance's comment surprised Keith because of the truth in it. Ever since they found the Black Lion empty, the possibility had been rattling in Keith's mind like bats in a belfry. Keith felt Lance squeeze his hand gently and the gesture could've brought tears to his eyes. "Lance."

Lance gave Keith a quick smile. "I'm serious. You didn't do anything to make Shiro disappear. And you're not the only person affected by him disappearing. Your brother, my hero, everyone's friend."

"And what if he doesn't come back?" Just like that, Keith had unintentionally admitted what he was afraid of. He wasn't afraid of bonding with the Black Lion. In a way, he wasn't necessarily afraid of being forced to try and replace Shiro. It was the thought of Shiro being more than just lost to them. "What if - just like everyone else - he just leaves? And what if I lose you next?"

It was hard for Lance to try and smile in the face of this situation or make a joke to lighten the mood. Not when he had been asking the same question himself. Still, he kissed Keith's cheek and wrapped his arms around him. Lance felt him bury his face into his jacket as he spoke reassuringly. "You won't lose me, Keith. We're a team. No one's breaking up this dynamic duo."

Keith laughed softly but it leaked into a short sob. He'd been holding everything in since Shiro went missing. Now, it was spilling over like water overflowing a dam. Lance rubbed his back and continued. "We'll find Shiro. Hunk went over some specs and realized that Shiro's arm emits some sort of unique biometric signal. He and Pidge are finding a way to track it."

"They can do that?"

"Pidge is Pidge and it's Hunk. He's the gassiest, smartest guy I've ever met." Lance grinned and pulled away from Keith to wipe his eyes. There was some spark of hope in his amethyst eyes that hadn't been seen before. Even past the tears and the uncertainty, there was hope in him.

Keith was grateful that Lance had come into the training room. He originally went there to blow off steam but he was doing that sub-par. He wiped his face, pressed a quick kiss to Lance's lips. "I love you."

"Love you too. I think we just created a new bonding moment."

"So you remember the first one?"

Lance pretended to think for a moment. "…Nope."

"Babe, you're the best and the worst."


End file.
